Cooling unit for vehicles



Dec. 23, 1941. H A. GLENN EI'A L 2 2,267,456

COOLING UNIT FOR' VEHICLES Filed Nov. 8, 1939- 2 Sheets-Sheet l Q R1 E Q Q Q Q a Q m f j 7 I; I J T y a .78% mix Q :Niir H] 1 ll 4K ill I H T 1\ 1 Q; Q Q S: g & I i BY EUDPOWgOZd Y J ATTORNEYS v v V Dec. 23, 1941. H. A. GLENN ETAL 2,267,456

COOLING UNIT FOR VEHICLES Filed Nov. 8, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS bowar'd fl. GZ/(ZTZJZ BY Jack: K. DfiovnyoLd ATTORNEYS.

Patented Dec. 23, i941 COOLING UNIT FOR VEHICLES Howard A. Glenn and Jack K. Dromgold,

Chicago, Ill.

Application November 8, 1939, Serial No. 303,437

8 Claims.

This invention relates to anair conditioning device for trucks, railway'cars, and the like.

One of the objects of the invention is the provision of a new and improved refrigerating or cooling mechanism for trucks or railway cars.

having novel means for cooling and circulating the cooling medium.

.Another object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved system for cooling trucks and the like by the use of novel mechanism utilizing air cooled by ice and cold brine as the cooling medium.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved apparatus for cooling the lading of trucks and cars by the use of air cooled by directing the air downward into direct contact with the ice and through a spray of cold brine and causing the air to then flow through a cold brine spray on its path to the lading compartment.

Another object -of the invention is the provision of a new and improved cooler for cooling the air preparatory to delivering the same onto the lading of a truck comprising causing the air to flow through aspray in a tortuous path before its final delivery.

A still further object of the invention is the provision of a new and improved refrigerating or cooling apparatus that is simple in construction,

easily installed, that occupies a minimum of lad- 3 ing space, and. that is efficient and economical.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. l is a side elevation of a truck showing ,the invention in position therein, with parts in section and parts broken away;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 22 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section of a modified form of the device; and

Fig. 5 is a vertical section on the broken line 5 5 of Fig. 4, with parts broken away.

In modern transportation, a large portion of the lading is material of a perishable nature and requires the extensive use of refrigeration of one kind or another. The present invention relates to a refrigerating or cooling apparatus that is adapted to use air as the cooling medium. 'The air is cooled by causing the same to flow through a spray of brine cooled by ice and into direct contact with the ice before it is introduced into the cooling chamber containing the lad'ng.

While the invention is applicable to cooling devices forrailway cars, or to refrigerating devices where'ver necessary or desirable, whether in vehicles or other places of storage, the invention, for the purpose of illustration, discloses the -device as employed on a truck of conventional design.

Referring now to the drawings, the reference character It! designates a truck having the cab portion II and the trailer or closed body portion I2. The body portion l2 comprises the front wall l3, sidewalls l4 and the bottom wall i5, as is usual in such constructions. Mounted in the forward end of the body portion is what for convenience of description will be termed a cooling or refrigerating unit which comprises a container or receptacle l6 which is a boxlike structure having the front wall ll, rear wall 18, top and bottom walls l8 and 2 I, respectively, and the end walls 22. erably, though not necessarily, spaced from the adjacent walls of the vehicle body.

The container I6 is secured to the bottom wall l5 adjacent to the end wall I3 of the trailer or body portion IE but is preferably, though not necessarily, spaced therefrom. The container I6 is adapted to contain brine and ice 23. The salt and ice may be inserted into the container through suitable doors 20 in the back wall of the container. Instead of using ice for cooling the air and brine, amechanical cooling unit of conventional form may be employed for cooling the air. The container has, adjacent its upper end, a partition or deflector plate 24 that is attached to the top wall 19 and extends diagonally downwardly and forwardly adjacent to the front wall H thereby forming an air chamber 25 having a restricted discharge opening 26 at its lower edge.

This opening extends the full width of the container. The partition or deflector 24 extends throughout the length of the container I6 and its lower end is bent downwardly as at 21 for cooperating with a plate 28 attached to the front wall of the container IE to form the restricted discharg opening 26.

Suitable means are provided for supplying air to the chamber 25. In the form of the construction selected to illustrate one embodiment of the invention, a fan or blower 29 is mounted on the side wall of the container [6 between the com tainer and the side wall i3 of the truck body. as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings. The fan shaft 3|, Figs. 1 and 3, extends outwardly through the front wall [3 of the trailer and has a pulley 32 mounted thereon. Attached to the front wall l3 of the truck body, between the body and cab,

The container walls are all pref-v 35 thereof provided with a pulley 38 around which, and the pulley 32, is trained the driving belt 31.

The parts are so constructed that when the motor 34 operates the fan, the fan will discharge the air through the discharge opening 88 into the chamber 25 and the pressure of the air in the chamber will force the air downwardly through the restricted opening 26 onto the ice at considerable velocity for cooling the air.

Suitable means are provided for causing an equal distribution of the air through the slot 26. Any suitable construction may be employed for this purpose. As shown, a horizontal partition or baffle 24a is employed which extends partially across from the fan discharge to the opposite wall. The air discharged from the fan passes outward above and around the partition or baffle 24a and then through the slot throughout its length. The pressure built up in the chamber, together with the baflle, will be sufllcient to cause an equal flow of air through the slot throughout its length.

In order to assist in the cooling operation, a spray mechanism 39 is provided in the container IS. The spray mechanism comprises a pump 4| having its shaft 42 extending to the outside of the container I8 within the trailer l2 and is provided with a pulley 43 in alinement with a pulley 44 mounted on the motor shaft 35 between the front wall l3 of the trailer and the front wall ll of the receptacle It, as clearly shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. Trained around these pulleys is a belt 45 for driving the pump from the motor.

The intake of the pump is provided with a strainer 48 having an intake opening 41 through which the cold water from the melting ice is drawn into the pump. The strainer 48 may be provided with a drain pipe 48 having a suitable valve 49 through which the brine may be drained when desired. The discharge of the pump is connected to a standing pipe or tube extending upwardly from the pump between the end wall 22, of the container and the side wall l4 of the trailer, as shown in Fig. 3. The pipe 5! has connected thereto a horizontal tube 52 which extends through the end wall 22 of the container a short distance below the level of the restricted opening 28 of the chamber 25. This tube is provided with a plurality of cross-arms 53 which extend forwardly and rearwardly from said tube. The outer ends of the cross-arms 53 are provided with suitable upwardly directed nozzles 54 which are adapted to spray the brine upwardly into the path of the current of air flowing through the discharge passage 28 onto the ice and also into the current as it flows upwardly after contacting the ice or water as the case may be. By means of this arrangement, the air is cooled by the spray and also by coming in contact with the ice as it flows through the container.

In order to remove the entrained free moisture, a suitable number of baffles 55 are provided, as shown in Fig. 2. The cooled air, deprived of its free moisture, is then discharged through the opening 56, Fig. 2, into the truck body toward the rear of the body adjacent to the top thereof and due to its weight settles onto the lading for cooling the same. It is recirculated over and over again through the refrigerating chamber by the fan.

The modified form of construction shown in Figs. 4 and 5 differs from that described above in that a perpendicular partition 51 which extends downwardly from the top of the refrigerating chamber l5 adjacent to the pipe 52 and in the plane thereof is employed instead of the inclined partition 24 of the previous construction. In this construction, the partition terminates short of the end wall of the refrigerating chamber, as shown in Fig. 4, whereby passage 58 is provided opposite the discharge opening 38 of the fan 29. The air discharged from the fan will pass along a passage 59 formed by the front wall I! of the chamber [8 and partition 51 through the spray from the nozzles 53 around the partition 51 through the passage 58 and back through a passage 6| formed between the rear wall l8 of the chamber l8 and the partition 51 through the spray from the side arms 54 to the outlet 62. Bafiies 63, vertically arranged, may be provided for removing free moisture carried over by the air from the spray, as in the previous construction.

In this form of construction, as in the previously described construction, the air is recirculated through the fan and through the refrigerating chamber during the operation of the apparatus.

In both forms of the device, it will be noted that the power unit is mounted exteriorly of the body whereby space is conserved and the heat from the unit is dissipated without the truck body.

While the fan is shown as being mounted on the side wall of the refrigerating unit, it is understood that it may be mounted on the top, side or end wall, as desirable, or occasion may require. Likewise, the motor may be mounted in various positions on the inside or outside of the body or on its top, end or side wall, as desired.

It is thought from the foregoing, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, that the construction and operation of our device will be apparent to those skilled in the art and that changes in size, shape, proportion and detail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a vehicle having horizontal and vertical walls enclosing a space for lading, a refrigerating unit within said space and adapted to contain ice, a plurality of nozzles for spraying a liquid cooled by said ice into said unit, a pump between said unit and one of said vertical walls for supplying said liquid to said nozzles, a fan between said unit and a vertical wall of said enclosure at the upper portion of said enclosure, a shaft extending from said fan to the exterior of said enclosure for operating said fan from said motor, said shaft extending to the exterior of said unit but within said enclosure for operating said pump from said motor, and means for conducting air from said fan downwardly through said spray as it enters said unit and for conducting said air upwardly through said spray just prior to being discharged from said unit at the upper portion thereof.

2. In combination, a truck having a space for lading, a receptacle within said space for containing ice, a fan, a discharge conduit for said fan in the upper portion of said receptacle, said conduit having an enlarged air containing space provided with a restricted discharge opening for directing air at high velocity from said last named space downwardly onto said ice for cooling the air, and a conduit for discharging said air into the upper portion of said space.

3. In combination, a truck having a space for lading, a receptacle within said space for containing ice, a fan, a discharge conduit iorsaid fan, said conduit having an enlarged air containing space provided with a downwardly converging discharge opening for directing air at high velocity downwardly onto said ice for cooling the air, a conduit for conducting said air upwardly from said ice and discharging the same into the upper portion of said space, and bailles in said lastnamed conduit for preventing free moisture from passing over into said space by being entrained in said car.

4. In a truck, a closed body for containing I lading, a refrigerating unit within said body, said unit comprising a receptacle for containing ice, a fan mounted on the exterior of said unit within said body adjacent the upper wall thereof, an inclined partition forming with the end and front walls of said unit an air chamber for receiving all of the air discharged from said fan, said chamber having a restricted opening at its lower I, portion for directing said air in a stream of high velocity directly onto the ice at all times within .said receptacle, and a discharge passage in the upper portion of said body and unit for said stream of air for conducting the same onto the lading contained within said body.

5. In a truck having a closed body for containing lading, a refrigerating unit within said body,

said unit comprising a receptacle for containing ice, a fan within said body mounted on said unit. exteriorly thereof, an air chamber within the upper portion of said unit having downwardly converging walls forming a restricted discharge passage in its lower portion for receiving air from the discharge of said fan, said air being discharged downwardly under pressure through said restricted passage directly onto said ice, a passage for conducting said air upwardly from said ice, a discharge passage in the upper portion of said unit for said air, means for spraying a cold fluid into said air as it moves downwardly and as it moves upwardly within said unit, the reversal in direction of movement of said air through said passages causing free particles of moisture to be separated from said air, and bailies in said last named passage for removing still more of said free particles of moisture.

6. In a truck having an enclosed space for lading, a receptacle having top, bottom and side walls within said space for containing ice, a fan adjacent to the upper wall of said receptacle for circulating air within said space, a passage for conducting air from said fan in one direction within said receptacle, nozzles below said passage for spraying water from said ice into said passage for cooling the air discharged from said fan, a

second passage for reversing the direction of flow in said air, and a pump adjacent to the lower wall oi said enclosed space for forcing said water through said nozzles, said fan and pump being exterior of said receptacle within said space.

7. A refrigerating unit for a truck body comprising a receptacle having top, bottom, side and end walls, for containing ice, a vertical partition extending partially across said container to form with the top and one of the side walls an intake passage for conducting air substantially horizontally in one direction within said receptacle above said ice and to form with the top and the other side wall a discharge passage for conducting said air in the opposite direction within said receptacle, above said ice, the last named side wall having a discharge opening in its upper portion, a, plurality of nozzles, pump means for discharging water from said ice upwardly into both of said intake and discharge passages, and a plurality of baiiies within said discharge passage adjacent to said discharge. opening for removing particles of free moisture from said air flowing through said discharge passage, said fan and pump being exterior of said receptacle and supported on. said unit.

8. In a vehicle having a closed body i or containing lading, a refrigerating unit within said body, said unit comprising a receptacle for containing ice, a wall within said unit for forming with the other walls of said unit an air passage, a fan mounted on said unit exteriorly thereof and having its intake adjacent the upper portion of said body and discharging into said passage in the upper portion of said unit, the arrangement of the parts being such as to cause air discharged from said fan to flow in one direction within said passage, reverse its direction and flow in the opposite direction within said unit and be discharged through a port in the upper portion of said unit adjacent to the roof of said body, and means, including a pump mounted on the exterior of said unit, for spraying cold brine cooled by said ice into air discharged from said fan within said passage before the direction of the flow of said air has been changed after being discharged from said fan.

HOWARD A. GLENN.

JACK K. DROMGOLD. 

